What All Teachers Should Know About WIDA’s ACCESS Test for English Learners

By Ileana Najarro

Najarro gives a basic description of the WIDA ACCESS test, what it is used for, sample questions, and how this information can help content teachers better support MLs language development.

The purpose of the test is to evaluate “language use in academic contexts, not content knowledge nor social language.” For this reason, general education teachers have a vital role in preparing students for success on the test. It is recommended that all teachers see samples of the types of questions on the test and are informed about what the test scores mean.

Although students cannot study for the test, they can be prepared through exposure to academic language in all of their classes. Students may be able to interact socially, but they may be weak in academic language. and teachers must understand the difference.

It is recommended that classroom and subject teachers be given time to meet with the ESL teacher to review students’ scores. If a student is weak in one domain, then they need more practice for that in all of their classes. Teachers also need to know what they can expect from MLs in their language development, and they need to set up opportunities for students to practice speaking, reading, and writing.

For the best support for MLs, time should be given “for general classroom teachers to plan with English-as-a-second-language teachers so they can review language objectives and learning standards together and come up with a plan on how to best promote language development across the school day.”

You can find the full article here. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/what-all-teachers-should-know-about-widas-test-for-english-learners/2024/05

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